Trigun: The Raven
by Gunslinger Angel
Summary: Meryl is now scarred by Millie's death and Vash is in need of her help! Will Meryl be able to help Vash while fighting criminals and confronting a new batch of Gun Ho Guns? IMPORTANT INFO IN AUTHOR'S NOTE CHAPTER! PLEASE READ! PLEASE REVIEW!
1. Chapter 1: Cold

_Note: Yasuhiro Nightow created Trigun and some of the characters that you are about to see were created by him. _

_Summary: Meryl is now scared by Millie's death and Vash is in need of her help! Will Meryl be able to help Vash while fighting criminals and confronting a new batch of Gun Ho Guns?_

**Trigun: The Raven**

Chapter 1: Cold

_ It's been six weeks since we, Millie and myself, have seen Vash. He had left us on the same day that he returned to town after his battle with Knives, he told us that it was too dangerous for us to follow him now that he had his brother with him. I wanted to tell him so much about my feelings for him but I guess I would never be able to tell him at all. Before he left, he told us to take care and to live a life that was fulfilling and happy to us. But how? How can I live a life in which I can be happy when the only thing…the only person who could make my life happy was about to leave us? How?…I don't know what to do anymore with my life…I guess I should just go on with life…I guess I should live a life in which Vash the Stampede never existed._

"Meryl? Meryl! Come on wake up sleepyhead!" said the gentle voice of Millie. Meryl slowly opened her eyes and raised her head to meet a tall woman with blue eyes and long brown hair carrying a stack of papers. "Uh…Meryl? I was wondering if you could help me sort out and file these papers. If you're too busy then that's okay I can take of this by myself."

"Well of course I can help you Millie," said Meryl and rose from her chair. Meryl and Millie were both back at the Bernardelli Headquarters in December City and life seemed to return to normal for the both of them after Vash left them. There had been no reports about Vash the Stampede sightings for at least five weeks and the rumors about him were already starting to disappear. It was like as though Vash was beginning to fade away like a dream…

"Thanks a lot Meryl I really appreciate it!" said Millie with a smile and started to walk to the filing room with Meryl following behind her. They spent the rest of the day sorting and filing the papers and by the time they were finished, it was almost night and the office was about to close.

"Better hurry up and get ready or we'll be locked in," said Meryl as she was getting her purse. Just then she remembered that she had to the store a get couple of things before she had to head home. "Oh, hey Millie?" asked Meryl, "Would you like to go to the store with me? I hate going to the store by myself at night and I was just wondering if you would.."

But before she could finish her sentence, Millie replied with a smile, "I would gladly come with you!"

When they arrived at the store, Meryl quickly got the items that she needed and headed toward the cashier. "This will only take a moment Millie, "said Meryl, "you can go on outside and wait for me." Millie nodded and went outside.

"That'll be $$33 ma'am," said the cashier.

"Here you go," said Meryl and handed the cashier the money.

"Thank you come again, "said the cashier giving Meryl her bag. When Meryl was about to open the door to go outside she heard a horrific scream and three gun shots after that. She dropped the bag and quickly opened the door. "_That sounded like Millie's voice!"_ she thought, "_Please…Please for the love of God…Don't let it be Millie's body that I see when I get there."_

But it was too late, the body was only a couple of yarz away from the store and Meryl could already tell who it was, Millie. Meryl, at first, walked slowly towards the corpse but a few seconds later she made a mad dash to the body while screaming out, "MILLIE!"

The body was lying face down in a pool of blood, Millie's blood. Her blue and yellow coat was stained was in blood. Meryl knelt down and quickly turned the body on its back, there were three bullet holes: one in the stomach, one in the area where the ribs connected, and the last one in the head. Millie's eyes were still open but they had no life in them, not anymore.

"Millie! No, no, no, no….Not Millie! Why her," Meryl cried while cradling Millie's head in her arms. Tears began to flow from Meryl's gray eyes. "SOMEONE HELP! SOMEONE PLEASE HELP!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, "Someone…Anyone…Vash…Please help us."

Several hours later, Meryl sits on a bench at the Sheriff's office. Her navy blue skirt and white shirt still stained in blood. The sheriff came out of his office, sat down beside her, and looked down.

"We found the ones who killed your friend," said the Sheriff, "they were one of the street gangs in this city. They confessed and said that they just wanted to rob your friend but once things got a little bit complicated, one of the members drew out his gun and shot her…I'm very sorry miss."

"I killed her, "Meryl said quietly.

"What? What are you talking about miss?" asked the Sheriff, scratching his head.

"I killed her. I let her die," said Meryl. Her eyes looked lifeless like Millie's. "If I didn't ask her to go wait outside for me or maybe if I didn't ask her to come with me to the store then maybe…just maybe she would of…"

"Listen miss, there wasn't anything you could have to save her. These things happen. It's a crappy world out there and no one is really safe from danger," said the sheriff and placed his hand on Meryl's shoulder. "I'm truly sorry miss. I'll be sure to tell your friend's family about what had happened. Do you happen to know where her family lives?"

"Yes, most of them live in small town just southwest of here. It's called Hudson Town, I believe," Meryl said without looking at the sheriff.

The sheriff nodded and got up but before he went back to his office he said, "Why don't you go back home miss, there is nothing left here that you can do now."

Meryl slowly rose from the bench and left. The street was empty and quiet. The air around her was hot and stuffy. She slowly walked to the middle of the street and looked up to the starry night sky. The fifth moon had risen and it was looking at her with its dark eye, the hole that Vash had created. Tears once again flowed from her eyes and said, "I wish you were here with me…Vash." She then lowered her head and headed for home.

When she reached her apartment, she walked to her bedroom and looked through the window. "_Everyone is either dying or leaving me…First Wolfwood, then Vash, and now…Millie,"_ she thought, "_so much has happened and I don't think… that I'll be able to handle it." _She put her hands together which felt strangely cold all of a sudden. She looked at her hands and quickly rolled up one of her sleeves. She put her bare arm on her face to be sure that it was only her hands that were cold, but strangely enough, both her face and arm were also cold. She then looked back up to the window

"Strange…I feel so cold all of a sudden," whispered Meryl while looking at the fifth moon. And so, for the rest of her life, Meryl would always remain cold to the touch.

_This is my very first fanfic so please bear with me! I'll start typing chapter 2 sometime around next week hopefully. Please review!--Gunslinger Angel_


	2. Chapter 2: Return of the Stampede

_Hello everyone to another exciting chapter of Trigun: The Raven! In this chapter there will be surprises and much more ((Hopefully))! So sit back, relax, and enjoy the story! But before I start I would like to say that Yasuhiro Nightow created Trigun and some of the characters that you are about to see._

**Trigun: The Raven**

Chapter 2: Return of the Stampede

_I can't go back to them now. Not until I have buried my past will I be able to see them again because if I do, they would be grave danger that could cause them to lose their lives. But I miss them so much…One of them is not only like a friend to me but she is also like a sister to me and the other…the other…She has another place in my heart, a place that I myself do not understand yet._

One Year after Millie's death:

The room was dark and the only lights illuminating the room were the lights of the computer screens, humming and beeping constantly, and a large glass bulb that was located in the middle of the room. The bulb was hanging upside down and it was filled with some sort of green liquid. Floating in the center of the bulb was what appeared to be the shape of a person curled up in a ball.

"He is about to wake," said a small, old man. "Quickly, begin to drain the bulb," he said and slowly, the green liquid began to drain through the outlet of the bulb. The only thing that was left was the person still curled up in a ball. His shivering body was still covered by the green liquid and his long blonde hair covered his face. The small man quickly opened the door with a blanket in his arms and entered into the bulb ((they recently installed this in order to get easy access into the bulb instead of just breaking it open)). When he reached the person he covered the person's body with the blanket. He then pushed the hair out of the person's face and smiled. "Good morning Vash, "he said with a smile and then the person's eyes opened and looked up at the small man with a pair of aqua eyes.

Several hours later, Vash opened his eyes again to the blinding light of the ceiling lights. He slowly rose and looked around at his new environment. "_I must be in the Infirmary_," he thought and smiled, "_I guess the process really did work."_ Just then the door opened and the same small, old man entered with a grin on his face.

"Long time no see Vash. How did you sleep?" asked the small man as he approached Vash's bed.

"I slept great Doc! Thanks for asking!" Vash said with a big smile but then the smile quickly disappeared when he realized something. "Strange, my voice seems to be a little bit higher than before. Did something happen during the process Doc?" asked Vash.

"The Re-growth process went perfectly. Your scars have healed but your left arm is still gone so you will still need a prosthetic one and you are ten times more powerful then you were before," said Doc and then looked down, "but there is a side effect."

"A side effect, what do you mean?" asked Vash. He didn't like the word "side effect" and he didn't even want to know what it was but he had to know. Doc took out a small pocket mirror and gave it Vash. Vash paused for a moment, closed his eyes, and lifted the mirror to his face. He quickly opened his eyes and saw something that made him scream. "AHHHHHHHHHHH! WHAT DID YOU DO TO MEEEE! I'M A…I'M A…A…KID AGAIN! I LOOK EIGHT YEARS OLD AGAIN! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING TO MEEEE!" he cried out with a waterfall of tears coming out of his eyes. All of his physical characteristics were small. His eyes, ears, even the length of his hair made him look like a kid. Vash physically appeared to be an eight year old boy.

"Now Vash please calm down," said Doc.

"How can I calm down when I literally regressed back to my childhood!" yelled Vash with the waterfall still coming down from his eyes.

"This is only temporary Vash. It's going to take several months for you to grow back to your original age appearance. You are still 130 years old and your mind is still the same before you went through the process," said Doc.

"_He has a point, whenever I think my voice is still the same before I went through Re-growth,"_ Vash thought. "What a sec, did you say that it's going to take several months for me grow back! I can't wait that long! I'll die before that! Knives could have a new team of assassins by now and they are probably hunting me down right now! If they see me like this they'll chop me up into little pieces and then chop those pieces into even more little pieces and then chop those pieces into…"

"Alright Vash, I get your point!" interrupted Doc. "Yes, that it true, if Knives does have a new batch of assassins they are most likely looking for you and you are completely defenseless right now."

"And I can't stay here, this place is probably the first place that they will look, "said Vash and pounded his fist into the mattress of his bed. "Damn it! I wish there was a solution to this!"

"There is," said Doc and walked over to the radio that was on a table located next to Vash's bed.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" asked Vash with a puzzled look.

"You'll see hopefully, "said the Doc as he was turning the knobs of the radio to a specific station, "I hope they'll be talking about him today."

"Him? Who are you talking about?" asked Vash. But before his question was answered a loud and funny-sounding voice came out of the radio speakers.

"HELLLLLLOOOOOOO GUNSMOKE! This is Chit-Chat Carl talking to you live! For today's topic we will be talking about bounty hunters and bounties! Our first subject will be Rusty McJones, a criminal who has a very bad and very quick temper! He's one of the head honchos for the Dust Rat Gang, a big and notorious gang of thieves and killers located in December City," said Chit-Chat Carl, "but now, thanks to a certain bounty hunter whom we will be talking about soon after this, Rusty is the only head honcho who has not been caught and arrested yet. Even as we speak, Rusty and what is left of the gang are searching through December hunting down the bounty hunter who put all of their buddies in jail!"

"Is that the man who you were talking about?" asked Vash as he lay back down on the bed.

"Shhh! No! It's the bounty hunter who I am more interested in," said Doc and listened closely to Chit-Chat Carl.

"And who is this bounty hunter? It is none other than The Raven! This bounty hunter popped up his little head about a year ago by catching one of the biggest bounties in Gunsmoke! That's right folks, The Raven single-handedly caught Roderick the Raptor, the criminal who has robbed from more banks than anyone! The Raven is currently hunting down the last remaining members of the Dust Rat Gang who are also currently hunting down The Raven!" said Chit-Chat Carl. "Now, I don't know what The Raven looks like or what his real name is due to the fact that The Raven always has his face and body covered with black clothing, but what I do know is that he has superb marksmanship and is very quick on his feet. There are rumors around the planet that say that The Raven himself could easily catch the Humanoid Typhoon, Vash the Stampede! A name that is fading and fading fast! Also, I, Chit-Chat Carl, will be heading for December City tomorrow and try to get an interview with The Raven himself and maybe then we might be able to see who he really is!"

Soon after that the Doc turned off the radio and faced Vash, who was sitting up again. "Well, there you have it," said Doc. "Tomorrow morning we will be heading for December City and find The Raven. Once we find him, we shall ask him to protect you from Knives' assassins until you have grown back to your original appearance."

Vash's eyes widened and his mouth hanged open. When he finally snapped out of it he said, "Are you serious? You can't just force a man to protect someone who is being hunted down by who knows what! This Raven person could die while trying to protect me or he could be dead by now by Rusty McJones! Anyways, how can you be sure that he will even accept this offer?"

"We'll ask him," said Doc. "I've been listening to the radio and have heard interesting things about him such as his skill that you have just heard about. If his skill is equal to yours then we have a high possibility that he might be able to protect you."

"So that's it then, we're going to December City and ask The Raven to protect me for several months," said Vash. He didn't believe what the Doc was saying to him. A bounty hunter! A person who hunts down criminals for a paycheck and nothing more!

"Now come on Vash! That big bounty on your head is long gone now so there is nothing to fear from him," said Doc.

The Doc had a point. Now that the $$60 billion bounty on his head was gone he could no longer be hunted down by bounty hunters and law enforcement anymore unless he did another crime that would give him a bounty on his head. Vash sighed and said, "Alright, I'll go with your plan."

Doc nodded and said, "Glad to here it. I'll start preparing for our trip. You get plenty of rest now, we've got a big day tomorrow." As soon as he left, Vash lay back down on the bed and looked at the ceiling.

"_What have I gotten myself into?"_ he thought and just then an image of Millie and Meryl smiling at him popped up in his head. He smiled and thought, "_That's right! Millie and Meryl live in December! Maybe I could visit them while we're there."_ But soon that smile faded and Vash turned to his side. "_No, I can't visit them. I can't see them now. I don't want them to see me as a little boy and anyways Knives' assassins could possibly be there and if they see me with Millie and Meryl then…then…they would be hunted down just like me…Maybe it would be best to avoid all contact with them. It'll be safer for the girls and me," _thought Vash. "_But I miss them so much! I want to see them, I need to see them! But…I can't,"_ thought Vash as tears streamed out of his small eyes and slowly, he cried himself to sleep.

Tomorrow came and Vash and the Doc rode out of the fallen ship on Thomas back and headed for New Oregon, the nearest city form the fallen ship, to catch a bus for December.

"Hmmm…I wonder if we'll be able to see The Raven in a showdown with Rusty McJones, then we could see how good a skill The Raven actually has. It would be so exciting!" said the Doc happily as the bus drove through the desert.

Vash could say nothing but smile. "_Yeah, it would be pretty interesting to see how The Raven reacts to situations in which a life is on the line,"_ he thought and the smile faded. _"Bad times are ahead and I hope that The Raven will be able to survive through them because if he agrees to our offer then my life and possibly the survival of the human race will be in his hands, "_ thought Vash and looked through the window with sad eyes.

_How was that? Were you surprised? I hope so because there is going to be more of that in the later chapters including Chapter 3! In that chapter Vash and the Doc meet The Raven himself! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and are looking forward to the new upcoming chapters. Please review and thank you! –Gunslinger Angel_


	3. Chapter 3: The Raven vs Rusty McJones!

_Hello! This is Gunslinger Angel again bringing you Chapter 3! Hope you all enjoy!_

**Trigun: The Raven**

Chapter 3: The Raven vs. Rusty McJones!

_I fight to protect. I fight the wicked and cruel to protect the weak and innocent. I fight to make this forsaken world a better place, a place in which the future generations to come can live in peace and without suffering. I will fight to make a better future for all…I will fight till I take my very last breath. _

Three Days Later:

The crowded streets of December City were filled with chatter and laughter. Children were playing cops and robbers while the adults shopped and talked to friends. Walking through the crowd was a figure that stood out like a sore thumb, a figure dressed in black. He had a long black coat that touched the ground and had something sticking out in the collar, a big black hat that shaded his head, and a black scarf wrapped around his face. The only thing that wasn't black and stood out was a pair of dark blue sunglasses in square frames.

He walked into a restaurant called The Cat's Meow and once he entered everyone stopped what they were doing and looked nervously at him. There was a slight pause before he walked toward the bartender, who was standing behind the bar that was on the other side of the room. As the black-clothed man walked across the room he could hear whispers and mumbles coming from the people sitting in the tables.

"That's him," whispered one man to another man who was sitting beside him.

"Is that The Raven Mommy?" asked a small girl.

"Shhh!" whispered the little girl's mother while she wrapped her arms around her daughter and pulled her to her side.

When The Raven finally reached to the bar and sat down, the bartender said nervously, "Well…uh…Mr. Raven…What can I get you?"

The Raven was about to order when he heard another little voice called on him, "Uh…Mr. Raven?" The Raven looked down and saw a little boy looking straight at him. "Ummm…I was just going to say…Ummm…Thank you very much sir!" said the little boy and ran back to his mother who was sitting at the corner. She quickly wrapped her arms around him and turned him toward the wall with her body.

"We're sorry that we've disturbed you Mr. Raven but we just wanted to say thank you. Thanks to you, December is a little bit more peaceful now that a majority of the Dust Rat Gang is behind bars. You've finally given us some peace," said the mother as she was holding her son in her arms. Little that she knew that when The Raven heard that, a smile crept onto his face but sadly no one could see it because of his scarf.

The Raven gave a nod to the woman and turned around to face the bartender again. The bartender was about to tell The Raven about some suggestions on the menu when there was a sudden loud crash right outside the door. The Raven was screaming something out loud but no one could hear it due to the shattering of the glass windows and the screams of the people in the restaurant. The Raven quickly ran towards a couple of people, who were sitting close to one of the windows, and covered them with his body.

Once the screaming stopped and the shattered glass settled there was voice coming outside, and it sounded like a drunken old man. "I'm calling you out you little dusty butt muncher! I've got a score to settle with you!" yelled out the voice. "Get out here Raven!"

The Raven rose up and shook off the glass on his coat. He was about to leave when he heard the bartender say, "Please don't leave Mr. Raven! Rusty McJones is a criminal that should not be messed with."

The Raven turned his head toward the bartender, revealing a little bit of The Raven's eye. The bartender could have sworn that The Raven had gray eyes, but they were the saddest eyes that he had ever seen. The Raven gave him a nod and walked outside. Once outside, The Raven was staring at the face of Rusty McJones with his dark blue sunglasses.

"So, you have finally decided to come out," said Rusty with a smirk. What the bartender said was true; Rusty McJones was a criminal that should not be messed with because he was inside of what looked like a giant robot suit that had a rocket launcher in one hand and a machine gun in the other and, of course, he had henchmen with him. They all had evil grins on their faces as they pointed their guns at The Raven. "Think you can arrest us all, Raven?" asked Rusty and gave out a little laugh. The Raven said nothing in response to Rusty's question which made him very angry. "What the hell is wrong with you! Are you deaf or something!" yelled out Rusty and once again The Raven did not respond. Instead, The Raven searched inside his coat and took out something that looked like a grenade. Everyone gasped and stood there in horror, especially Rusty.

"He's not really gonna…" said one of the henchmen but before he could finish his sentence The Raven pulled out the ring and threw it at Rusty and his gang but instead of a bang there was smoke coming out and everyone started to cough and close their eyes from the stinging sensation. Once the smoke had settled, Rusty opened his eyes and saw that The Raven had run away!

"Why that little, yellow bellied blackhead! I'm gonna turn him into minced meat!" yelled out Rusty and started to wave his hands around, "Don't just stand there you idiots! Go get him! And once you do find him, hold him till I get there! I want to teach him a lesson about messing around with the Dust Rat Gang!" The henchmen obeyed and ran down the street in a hurried frenzy.

Vash fell to his knees and started to kiss the ground. "Finally, we're in December City!" rejoiced Vash. It had been three long days since the Doc and he left New Oregon in search of The Raven, who was somewhere in December City. Vash didn't mind the bus ride itself, it was just the people in the bus, who were saying what a cute little boy he was, and that annoyed the heck out him. But now that they had arrived, he was overwhelmed with joy. "If I get another pinch on the cheek, I am going to scream!"

The Doc looked at him and smiled, "Now come on Vash. It wasn't so bad now…"said the Doc but before he could finish, Vash gave him an evil, mean look which meant that he didn't want to hear the rest of the sentence so the Doc decided to start another topic. "Well now, shall we start looking for The Raven?" he asked but before Vash could respond, a person dressed in black ran pass them and a couple of seconds later, a group of rough looking men with guns in their hands ran in the same direction that the man in black ran in.

"The Raven went that way! After him!" yelled one henchman as they ran.

After that, there was a couple of seconds of silence before the loud and fun-sounding voice of Chit-Chat Carl, who also happened to riding in the bus that Vash and the Doc rode, called out, "Did you hear that folks! The Raven is being hunted down by the Dust Rat Gang even as we speak! This could lead to a very messy showdown folks and I definitely do not want to miss this!" After he said that, he hurriedly ran to the direction that the gang ran in and soon the rest of the people around Vash and the Doc followed him.

"I guess that's our man. Shall we…"said the Doc but before he could finish Vash started to run to the direction that Chit-Chat Carl and the rest of the people ran. The Doc quickly ran after him and said, "What's the matter with you, Vash?"

But Vash didn't respond. Instead, he kept on running down street thinking, "_That man…The Raven…I sensed something in him when he passed us…It was something familiar but I don't know yet…I have to figure it out once I meet him."_

The Raven reached to the center of the city in which the monument stood and stopped. He bent down, put his hands on his knees, and tried to catch his breath. He looked up, turned around with the monument to his back, and saw Rusty coming down the street towards him. He quickly looked around and saw that all the other streets were blocked by Rusty's henchmen and crowd of people that stood behind them.

_"All exits are blocked,"_ thought The Raven, "_I can't lead them to a more open place…I might as well have to fight them here."_

"This is the end of the line for you!" yelled out Rusty and gave out an evil grin. "Now I'm gonna make you pay for sending all my comrades to jail!" He then raised the rocket launcher and aimed it at The Raven.

Vash finally made it to the crowd and squeezed his way through the crowd. When he finally made it to the front of the crowd, he saw a robotic arm holding a rocket launcher that was aimed at the man in black. Vash could do nothing but watch.

_"I…Feel so powerless…I can't stop this…Many people, even The Raven, could die from this_," Vash thought and tears started to flow down his eyes.

"_Some many lives are in danger…Can I be able to prevent any deaths?"_ asked a voice that echoed in Vash's head, a voice of a woman.

Suddenly, Vash stopped crying and looked around. He was looking at the faces of the crowd. He was searching for the person who belonged to that voice. _"Meryl...Where are you? I can hear you but I can't see you…Meryl?"_ Vash thought as he searched desperately at the faces of the crowd, hoping to find Meryl's face.

"Got any last words before I turn you into ground beef?" asked Rusty while his rocket launcher was still aimed at The Raven. The Raven said nothing but he did lift up his index finger from his right hand which meant that he was asking Rusty to wait for just a moment.

"_Well, if I do die here….I should at least show these people who I really am and stop all of these rumors about me being a man…Plus, all this heavy clothing will slow me down while fighting Mr. Tin Can,"_ The Raven thought as he began to take off his coat, hat, and scarf.

_"Heavy clothing? What going on here?"_ thought Vash but before he could think of anything else his eyes widened as he saw The Raven reveal his true self.

The Raven had black cargo pants with a long handgun in its holster that was strapped to each leg, a sleeveless black velvet shirt with gold buttons sewed along his right shoulder, a long rifle strapped around back, black combat boots, a long piece of black duster cloth that was wrapped around his hips and dropped down to his ankles, a black leather belt warped around his hips, some sort of black arm guard that covered both his elbows and a little bit of his arms, raven black hair that dropped to his shoulders, and a pair of gold earrings. But something was wrong with his figure, it didn't look anything like a man, and plus, he was short.

"WHAT, YOU'RE A GIRL!" cried out Rusty with his hands on his head.

The Raven looked straight at Rusty with her dark blue sunglasses, gave a smirk, and said, "Yep, that's right! Your buddies got their asses kicked by a girl!"

"I will not let this fly! I will not be defeated by some little girl!" yelled Rusty and fired. The Raven just stood there until the very last second when the rocket was only a few fields away from her. She quickly jumped away from the rocket, which exploded onto the monument, and reached into her pocket. She revealed another grenade and threw at Rusty and his gang. She then took out one of her handguns and shot at the grenade while it was still in midair. The grenade exploded, and smoke and sparks started to spread everywhere. Rusty and his henchmen started to cough and cover their eyes from the smoke. Rusty then heard the screams and shots coming from his men, attempting to defend themselves, as they were being beaten and shot by someone or something in the smoke.

"Where are you...Cough, Cough…Come on out and show yourself you yellow belly sissy!" yelled Rusty while choking from the smoke and covering his eyes. When the smoke finally settled, Rusty opened his eyes and saw all of his men lying on the ground moaning and groaning in pain. The funny thing was that none of them were killed.

"I really do hate the idea of taking someone's life. Sorry if you were expecting corpses," said The Raven. Rusty jerked his head around and saw that The Raven was standing on his robotic arm that carried the rocket launcher, which was still aiming at what was left of the monument. She had her rifle in her arms and was aiming at Rusty. "Now will you please behave like a nice old man and give up?" asked The Raven in a sweet and polite voice.

Rusty fumed and yelled out, "Over my dead bod…" But before he could finish his sentence he was pistol-whipped with the butt of The Raven's rifle and fell off his robot suit. He tried to crawl away but it was too late, The Raven had jumped down and aimed her rifle at him again.

"I will ask politely one more time. Will you please give up!" demanded The Raven.

"I'm not gonna get my ass whipped by some short bitc…" yelled out Rusty but before he could finish his sentence; The Raven hit him in the head with her fist.

"Now now now," said The Raven and pointed toward the crowd. Rusty followed the direction of her finger and saw a little boy with blonde hair and aqua eyes. "We've got children here and I don't want them to be exposed to such language at a young age," said The Raven and hit Rusty again in the head with her fist leaving him unconscious. Soon after that, a group of cavalry men came out of the crowd and began to handcuff and carry the injured members of the Dust Rat Gang.

Vash couldn't help but stare at The Raven as she turned to face him. She slowly walked towards him and bent down to look at him face to face.

_"The feeling that I sensed before…It's Meryl,"_ thought Vash as tears streamed down his eyes, "_Meryl is The Raven."_

The Raven took off her glasses, revealing a pair of sad, gray eyes, and smiled at Vash, "Hey it's okay little buddy I'm fine and that mean old man is arrested. There's nothing to be sad."

"Meryl…"sobbed Vash while tears still flowed down his eyes, "You've changed so much."

The Raven's smile faded and she asked, "How did you know…My real name?"

But before she could get an answer, Vash went back into the crowd and started to look for the Doc. "_Why her…Why did she have to be The Raven! I didn't want her to be danger...No! I won't let her be the one to protect me…I won't left her life be on the line for mine,"_ thought Vash while running through the crowd and fighting back his tears. He finally found the Doc who was standing on a box that was located around the edge of the crowd and holding a pair of binoculars in his hands.

"What an amazing showdown! I can't believe that The Raven was actually a woman! This is certainly going to be interesting!" said the Doc in an excited tone.

"Forget it! I don't want her to protect me. I'll take my chances by myself!" demanded Vaah and started to walk down the street.

The Doc got down from the box and caught up with Vash, "Now why the sudden change in mind?"

Vash stopped and looked at him with his tear-stained eyes and cried out, "It's Meryl! The Raven is really Meryl! I can't let her join us. I don't want her to lose her life for me!"

The Doc looked down as they continued down the street. It was a long moment of silence until the Doc finally said, "I'm sorry Vash but I can't let you face Knives in your current position. We have no choice but to trust in Meryl. She is the only one who could possibly defend you from Knives' assassins. You've seen her fight and you know that her skill is equal to yours! I'm so sorry Vash, but we are still going to ask for Meryl's help whether you like it or not."

Vash couldn't help but agree with the Doc with a slow nod. Behind them were the shouts and cheers of the townspeople, but one voice in particular struck Vash in his heart. It was Chit-Chat Carl's voice yelling out, "GIVE IT UP FOR MERYL THE RAVEN!"

Her name echoed in Vash's mind. Meryl the Raven…The one whose skill was equal to his own…Meryl the Raven…The short Insurance girl whom he had grown to trust while traveling together…Meryl the Raven…The one who would risk her life, her very own existence, in order to protect his life.

The next morning, Meryl was sitting at the desk of her apartment and drinking a cup of coffee. She was still tried from yesterday not only because of the fight she had with Rusty McJones but also from running away from some crazy, loud man who called himself Chit-Chat Carl. She gave out a sigh and continued drinking her cup when the image of the little boy she met yesterday popped up in her head. She placed her cup on the desk and looked out into the window.

"That little boy…He knew my name before I even said it…Who was he? He looked so familiar. He looked like…" said Meryl but she gave out a little laugh before she could finish her sentence. "Naw...It can't be him…I must be going crazy for thinking that, "she said and looked at the sky. "_But I really do wish that you were here,"_ Meryl thought and picked up her cup.

She then heard someone knocking at her door and quickly took out a gun that was in one of her desk draws. "Hello? Who is it?" asked Meryl.

"I'm sorry to disturb you Miss Raven, but can we come in? My friend and I are wondering if you could something for us?" asked the voice through the door. The voice sounded like an old man.

Meryl quickly walked to the door, looked through the eye hole and saw a short old man with someone hiding behind him but she couldn't get a good view of him. "Okay, hold on a sec, "said Meryl as she locked the door.

The old man walked into her apartment with a big suitcase in his arms but the other person stayed behind and covered his head and face with the grayish-brown cloak that he wore. Meryl raised an eyebrow in confusion and was about to invite the hiding person in when the old man said, "Thank you for meeting us at such short notice."

Meryl turned around and said, "Oh no problem." She then walked toward her small kitchen and asked, "Would you like something drink or eat?"

"No thank you, we won't take too much of your time. I've got a bus to catch anyway," said the old man as he placed the suitcase on the floor.

Meryl walked back out of the kitchen and saw that the hiding person had finally entered into her apartment. She smiled, walked toward the door, and closed it. She then walked to her desk and sat in the chair and asked, "So what is it that I can do for you?"

"I need you to protect someone for a certain amount of time. We don't have much to pay for your service but what would you gain from this task would certainly be more fulfilling than money," said the old man with a smile.

"It's okay if you don't have much money to pay me, I don't mind. I'm already loaded from the bounties that I catch so this task of yours is free of charge, "Meryl said with a smile. "So who is it that you want me to protect and for how long?" she asked.

"I would like you to protect Vash the Stampede for at least four months. Once the four months have passed, you are free from the task, "said the old man.

Meryl's eyes widen as she said, "Vash…the Stampede? You want me to protect Vash the Stampede! But…can't he protect himself! I mean…Isn't he the outlaw who can get out of the worst situations with little damage?" She couldn't believe it! She was actually quite thrilled to see Vash again but then again...What if he asked about Millie? What would she say to him?

"Well until further notice, Vash is in a bit of a situation in which he is unable to protect himself," said the old man.

"Oh I see," said Meryl as she began thinking of situations in which Vash was unable to defend himself. "_He could be injured, sick, or even worst…on the verge of death!"_ thought Meryl. "Alright then you got yourself a bodyguard!" she said.

"Excellent! Shall we shake on it then?" said the old man as he reached out his hand to Meryl, but she jerked back from the hand like as if she was scared of it. "Is something wrong with my hand?" he asked.

"Oh it's nothing!" said Meryl and quickly changed the subject, "So where is Vash anyway?"

"He's right here in this very room with us," said the old man and motioned for the hiding person to come forward. Meryl once again raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Don't be afraid Vash, she agreed to help us," whispered the old man and the hiding person slowly uncovered his head and face.

Meryl's eyes widen when she saw his face and thought, "_It's that little boy I saw yesterday!"_

Vash's face reddened and lowered his head in shame. "_I want to die or at least dig a hole in this floor and never come out of it again…This is embarrassing," _thought Vash.

"Miss Raven, allow me to introduce you to Vash the Stampede," said the old man and put his hand on Vash's shoulder.

"_This is going to be the beginning of a beautiful conversation,"_ Vash thought sarcastically and lowered his head even further.

_I hope you all are starting to like this so far. Please review! I'll have chapter 4 coming up ASAP!_


	4. Chapter 4: The Beautiful Conversation

_Hiya! This is Gunslinger Angel bringing you Chapter 4! This one is pretty boring but I do hope y'all enjoy! _

_P.S. Yasuhiro Nightow created Trigun and some of the characters that you are about to see. _

**Trigun: The Raven**

Chapter 4: The "Beautiful" Conversation

_What should I say to her? How can I explain to her about what had happened to me? To Knives? I don't know…I just don't know…All that I can say to her is "Please, please hear me out Meryl and maybe then you might know what had happened to me during this last year._"

There was a moment of silence after the old man introduced Vash to her. During that moment she was recollecting her thoughts, "_Vash is a kid? How could this be? Is it possible? There must be some mistake!"_

"It's no mistake Meryl, the boy you see now is the actualwanted outlaw who created a crater on the fifth moon and turned two major cities into rubble, Vash the Stampede, " said Vash as he forced a smile upon his face. He hated making false smiles, it hurt him so much and deep down inside he knew that it also hurt the ones close to him.

"_Did he just read my thoughts?"_ Meryl thought.

"_Yep, really sorry about that. I haven't quite controlled this mind reading ability of mine after I went through the process," _said Vash in his mind.

"Process? What process? And what happened to Knives!...Wha…WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?" Meryl demanded as she stood up from her chair.

"All will be explained if you just calm down, "said Vash in his little childish voice.

"And why do you sound like a boy when in my head you sound like yourself!" asked Meryl.

"Please Meryl…Please would you just hear me out?" begged Vash. Meryl looked into his eyes and saw the sincerity in them. Even though they were the eyes of a child, they were still Vash's eyes.

Meryl gave out a sigh and said, "Alright…I'll hear your story."

Vash gave her a smile and said, "Thank you." He was coming closer to her and was about to take her hand but Meryl jerked away from him, just like what she did with Doc. "_I'm going to have to ask her why she is so afraid of people touching her,"_ he thought as he sat down on the floor. Meryl sat back down on her chair and looked at Vash. He took in a deep breath and began his story.

"It all started when I left you and Millie with Knives on my shoulder. I was trying to figure out a way to take care of Knives while he was unconscious and unable to hurt anyone. So I decided to go to Doc, the man you met earlier," Vash said and pointed to the old man who was leaning against the wall.

Doc took off his hat and bowed at Meryl, "I'm sorry that I didn't introduce myself earlier, I completely forgot. I'm afraid that my old age is getting to me."

"It's alright," said Meryl and looked back at Vash, "please continue."

Vash nodded and continued, "The journey to get to Doc was long and strenuous. I didn't go to any town or city because I feared that Knives might wake up and start a massacre if I went to one. And because of that fear, I didn't even stop to rest. I traveled for three weeks until one day when I was so close to the ship I…collapsed from exhaustion. I didn't how long I was unconscious but when I woke up and rose I was pushed back down to the ground with a sharp pain in my shoulder. Looked up and saw that Knives had awakened. I then looked to my shoulder and saw that Knives used his Angel Arm blade to pin me down to the ground. He gave me an evil grin and said, 'You once told me that you will survive. Well, look at you now. It doesn't look like you're going to survive for very long…once I'm done with you.' It was then after that, he started stabbing me with his blade. After three minutes, he stopped and left me there to bleed to death…I had lain there unconscious, again, for three hours until a scavenging group from the ship came and found me. When I woke I found Doc standing beside me. He told me that my wounds were too severe for me to heal by myself. That was when he told me about Re-growth."

"Re-growth? It that the process you mentioned earlier?" asked Meryl.

Vash nodded and said, "Yes, Re-growth is a process that a Plant can go through in order to replenish and strengthen its energy. Doc told me that it was the only way to save me."

"And it did. Not only did it heal his wounds but it also healed all of his scars and increased his power, but the drawback of the process is what you are seeing before you. Vash's physical body regressed backed to the age appearance of eight and it will take at least four to five months for him to grow back to his original age appearance," said Doc while he was still leaning on the wall, "and that is where you come in Miss Raven because during those months Vash is likely to come across dangers in which his small body will not be able to handle such as criminals and, possibly, Knives' assassins. So will you still help us?"

Meryl took a moment to think about this and then she looked at Vash and his small, fragile body. She didn't want him to get hurt again, she didn't want him have any more scars on his body, she preferred that it was her body getting the scars than Vash's. She gave Vash a smile and said, "My answer is still the same. Vash protected me, now I'll be protecting him."

Vash was overjoyed, in fact too overjoyed that he had completely forgotten about Meryl's dislike of people touching her. He sprang to his feet with a smile on his face and leaped toward Meryl. Meryl tried to back away from him but it was too late, he wrapped his small arms around her waist and gave her a hug. It didn't take too long for Vash to figure out why Meryl didn't let anybody touch her. He slowly released his grasp from Meryl's waist and looked up with no longer a smile on his face but a concerned and worried look. Meryl looked down and met his aqua eyes with her sad gray eyes. There was a long moment of silence before Vash finally asked something that struck Meryl's heart.

"Meryl…Why do you feel so cold? It's not possible for someone to feel so cold on this planet…It's...too hot to feel icy cold. Meryl is there something wrong with you?" asked Vash in a concerned tone.

Meryl's eyes began to wander around the floor; she was searching for an answer. How could she explain to him? What could she say? "I…I don't know…I just don't know," said Meryl.

"I see," said Vash and looked down.

"_Well this certainly is depressing,"_ thought the Doc, "_Let's brighten things up a bit!"_

"_Huh?"_ thought Vash in response to Doc's idea. He had forgotten about Meryl's "cold condition" and was busily thinking about what the Doc was going to do.

Doc looked at his watch and said," Oh look at the time! I've got to get going, but before I go I have something for you Vash." Doc dragged the suitcase from its previous position and placed it in between Vash and Meryl. "In here will be the clothes you will need while you are growing in the next few months and speaking of growing," said Doc, "once a month, you will be going through a growing phase in which your body grows in appearances that are 4 years apart."

"So now that I am around the age of eight, I'll look like a twelve year old after my first growing phase," said Vash.

"Yes but during the growing phase you will experience intense pain," said Doc, "plus, you will have to be in your boxers in order to avoid any damage to your clothes and body."

Vash's eyes widen and his face reddens. Meryl gave a smirk and started to giggle. Vash quickly turned his head to Meryl and said, "Don't you even start!"

Meryl then stood up straight and said with a salute, "Yes sir!"

"Hey wait a minute," said Vash and quickly turned his head to the Doc, "I've got to go through intense pain!"

Doc nodded and started to walk back to the door…very slowly. "Oh now look at the time! I've got to head back home. I'll just leave you two alone now. Bye!"

There was a moment a silence before Meryl said while scratching her head, "Well, I guess that's that then." She looked down and saw that Vash was shaking with fear.

_"Intense pain! What if it's worse than any other pain that I have been through? But it's not only the pain I'm afraid of; it's going through it with my nothing but my UNDERPANTS! AND MERYL'S GOING TO BE WITH ME! What am I going to do!" _Vash thought until he felt a slap on his back. He looked up and saw Meryl smiling.

"Hey it's going to be okay. I'll protect you and when you are going through your growing phases, I'll just hide in the bathroom or the closet until the close is clear," Meryl said with a smile.

Vash felt like as if a load has been lifted off his shoulders. He gave out a sigh and said, "Thanks Meryl." Just then an idea came to his head. "Hey! Can we see Millie? It's been a while since I've seen her and if she wants to come with us it would be like the old times!" he said with a smile.

Meryl's smile faded for a second but she replaced it with another smile, a fake one. "Yeah, we can go see her. Let me just get something in my room," she said and headed to her room. When she came back she carried a grocery bag that was filled with pudding cups and fake flowers.

Vash looked at the bag confusingly and asked, "What's the bag for? Is Millie sick or something?"

"Oh no, it's something I thought she might like," said Meryl and headed toward the door.

It took a while for them to get to their destination which also confused Vash because it was a cemetery. "Are we meeting Millie here?" asked Vash.

"Yeah, something like that," replied Meryl. Suddenly, Meryl stopped, turned towards a tombstone, and said, "It's been a while Millie." She knelt down and started to place the contents in the bag around the tombstone. Vash stood behind her, his eyes began to flow with tears as he read the letters on the tombstone:

HERE LIES MILLIE THOMPSON

A LOVING DAUGTHER AND CARING SISTER

And below the engraving were four words that looked like as if they were carved with a knife:

WILL NEVER FORGIVE MYSELF

He was about to ask who carved those words when he found a long knife strapped to the back of Meryl's black leather belt. He paused for a moment and then asked, "When did she die?"

Merly stopped what she was doing and lowered her head. "She died about a year ago. Today is the anniversary of her death," she said, stood up, and turned to Vash," she was killed by three members of the Dust Rat Gang. They were going to rob her but when things got difficult, one of them pulled out their gun and shot her three times." She tried to give Vash a warm smile but he already knew that it was a fake. He knew that she was fighting back tears and was trying to show a smile to bear it. It was the smiles that he had given to Millie and her.

"So is that why you hunted down the Dust Rat Gang? For revenge?" asked Vash.

Meryl nodded and said," But I also did it in order to keep my vow."

"Your vow?" asked Vash with a confused looked on his face.

"That's right," said Meryl, "on the night of Millie's death I made a vow to myself."

_I hope you guys liked this even though there was a lot of talking in it. Please don't stop reading, the future chapters will start getting interesting ((hopefully  )). I'll have chapter 5 up as soon as possible and please review! Thank you! _


	5. Author's Note

**Author's Note**

I'm sorry that I haven't updated _Trigun: The Raven_ lately but I've decided to postpone it for a little while because I plan to make that story at least 50-something chapters ((which is long)) and if I only work on that then I won't have enough time to work on the other shorter pieces. So until further notice, I will start working on the shorter pieces of fanfic ((if you're interested in theother fanfics that I plan to work on, please see my profile)). Here will be the order of short stories that I will write: _A Cat Like You, Resurrection, ForTech, Rockin' Johnny, Project: Ark Angel, Division 18 Freaks, A New Life, Forevermore _and_ Innovation. _All of these stories are fanfics for Trigun. I hope you all will enjoy my upcoming stories.


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